Almeida Daniela, Quirino João, Matos Pedro, Esteves Fernando, Cruz Rita, Vala Helena, Mesquita João R
ICBAS-School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Porto University, Rua de Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal.
Department of Dermatology and Venereology, Centro Hospitalar Universitário São João EPE, Alameda Prof. Hernâni Monteiro, 4200-319 Porto, Portugal.
Pathogens. 2022 May 22;11(5):603. doi: 10.3390/pathogens11050603.
Toxoplasmosis is a worldwide zoonotic disease with different and complex routes for transmission. Workers occupationally exposed to animals or raw meat and viscera (WOE) may be at more risk than the general population, however conflicting data exist on the risk of developing toxoplasmosis due to this close contact. To add knowledge to this topic, the aim of the present study was to ascertain if WOE were more likely to be anti-T. gondii IgG seropositive than the general population as well as to study risk factors for T. gondii infection such as professional activity, gender, age, years of work and region. For this purpose, a case−control study using archived samples was setup. A total of 114 WOE (including pig slaughterhouse workers, butchers, veterinarians and farmers) and 228 anonymous volunteers (matched with cases by region, age and gender) were studied for anti-T. gondii IgG. A significantly higher anti-T. gondii IgG occurrence (p = 0.0282) was found in WOE when compared with the general population (72.8% [CI = 64.6−81.0%] versus 60.1% [CI = 54.6−65.6%]). Multivariate analysis showed that WOE of more than 50 years of age were more likely to be seropositive for anti-T. gondii IgG (aOR = 16.8; 95% CI 3.6−77.5; p < 0.001) than those aged less than 50 years. To our knowledge, this is the first case−control study on the prevalence of anti-T. gondii IgG in WOE in Portugal, also showing an added risk for T. gondii infection in those exposed to animals or their meat and viscera.
弓形虫病是一种全球性人畜共患病，其传播途径多样且复杂。职业性接触动物或生肉及内脏的工作者（WOE）可能比普通人群面临更高的风险，然而，关于因这种密切接触而感染弓形虫病的风险，现有数据存在矛盾。为增加对该主题的了解，本研究的目的是确定WOE是否比普通人群更易出现抗弓形虫IgG血清阳性，同时研究弓形虫感染的危险因素，如职业活动、性别、年龄、工作年限和地区。为此，利用存档样本开展了一项病例对照研究。共对114名WOE（包括生猪屠宰场工人、屠夫、兽医和农民）和228名匿名志愿者（按地区、年龄和性别与病例匹配）进行了抗弓形虫IgG检测。与普通人群相比，WOE中抗弓形虫IgG的发生率显著更高（p = 0.0282）（72.8% [CI = 64.6−81.0%] 对60.1% [CI = 54.6−65.6%]）。多变量分析显示，年龄超过50岁的WOE比年龄小于50岁的WOE更易出现抗弓形虫IgG血清阳性（调整后比值比 = 16.8；95% CI 3.6−77.5；p < 0.001）。据我们所知，这是葡萄牙首次关于WOE中抗弓形虫IgG患病率的病例对照研究，也表明接触动物或其肉及内脏的人群感染弓形虫的风险增加。
